As you drive to Ojai, it feels like you are steadily climbing
and the ride that follows to the coast will be all downhill. That
is not the case, though. Ojai’s elevation is a mere 745 feet.
There is some climbing out of Ojai Valley before the trail starts
to drop. We added some mileage by first heading farther
into town on the trail to see some of the historic sites and for
more cruising through the Ojai Valley Inn and Spa grounds.

Much of the Ojai Valley trail is paved rather than concrete,
and there are rough spots that made us happy that both the
Kalkhoff and the Izip bikes that we rented had front suspension. Much of the trail is fairly straight, but near town much is
shaded as well. As you leave the valley, the vistas open up a
bit with some nice views. As we dropped closer to the beach,

we were riding into the wind and were happy with the assistour e-bikes provided. Not all of the ride is lovely, though. Youpass close to a water-treatment plant and through some oilfields that are technically interesting but a little third-world-looking.The trail peters out in Ventura, and we asked directions tothe pier. We had only a short ride to connect with the coastalbike path that took us to the pier. We called for our shuttlepick-up and had just enough time for fish tacos before ourride arrived.Ojai is a great cycling destination, and we recommend theMob Shop’s excursions. Considering that the tours include abike rental, the prices are quite reasonable. ■www.themobshop.com

As you leave the shaded town parts of the
trail, some amazing vistas open up. You
never see Lake Casitas, but it is over the hill.